LenxKaitoYaoi: You know, I partially blame you for my delays in updates… Hayate was hiding a lot. Poor man though.

Derpette: Haha! I never thought of it that way, but yes. They kind of do. I like plot twists, I may have overwhelm myself though so I am trying to fix a few things. I promise it's nothing too major.

Kaymon3: ; A ; So sorry for the lack of updates, I'll try and be more active once I fix a few things. Please accept this chapter as a token of apology.

Boomer4ever: I apologize for my lack of updates. I am glad that you enjoy my fanfiction. That compliment is very big and I don't deserve it, but thank you very much!


Chapter Twenty-Eight: How it started

Hayate took a long, heavy deep breath; leaning back against the couch as sorrowful and guilt ridden eyes laid upon Len. He had to think of a way to explain his past to Len without causing his beloved child to hate him. "It was a long time ago… before you and Rin were even born." Hayate started. There was an obvious shakiness in his voice that Len quickly caught on too. That alone showed the seriousness of what Hayate was about to explain.

"The cult was masked as an orphanage… since it gave a boundless access to possible candidates… especially when twins were brought in. They rarely had to resort to kidnapping since taking care of children in this day and age is expensive…" Hayate continued, looking down to the ground as he let his memories come into him. "Being a doctor gave me more than enough skill to handle any situation that may arise from the procedures we'd do…"

Len felt himself tense up a little. The idea of his own father having a part in this made him uneasy, but he could tell from his eyes that he regretted it. "…Procedures to… revive their god… right?" He asked though it was a pointless question. Hayate looked to Len then nodded, his brows creasing.

"Only a set of twins… by the leader's legend… could be used to revive the god. One child being left untainted, while the other was filled to the core with impure actions and state of mind… It was a terrible process that I… in all honesty, avoided." Hayate clarified. His main role simply being the after care of the children after the tainting was completed. "To find the impure child from the pure one… I honestly don't know how. I know it involved drinking something and a reaction was to occur. I was never present during this."

Hayate closed his eyes in thought. "Why it had to be twins… I guess…It's like a coin… It has two sides… And like twins… one is bound to reflect the other in the opposing way. Not to say it is like that with all twins… That's why they would taint the one more likely to be impure." He stated, looking back to Len as he crossed his arms over his chest. Another sigh escaped him as he tried to figure out how to explain more. "Unfortunately… one of the twins had to be sacrificed to allow the god to be revived. I honestly never really paid attention to their rules… I was merely there for medical care and clean up…"

Len was quiet for a few minutes. With that said, it was hard to believe he was actually 'part of the cult', but more so a hired hand. He tilted his head a bit. "Why… did you leave?"

Hayate managed a small smiled when Len asked that. His expression went into a soft one before his eyes traveled to Karen. "I fell in love… I wanted to quit the cult as soon as possible afterwards so I could focus on work and my wife…" He answered. Len noted the sullen expression once again returning to Hayate's face before he stood up and walked to the window. There was a long pause as he looked out, as if trying to decide his next words.

"When I told them I was leaving… they didn't seem to mind much, though they requested I wait a year until their current procedure at the time was completed… I stupidly complied." Hayate said with resentment. It was possibly his biggest mistake to stay. "Seven months rolled on by… and Karen announced that she was having twins… It was a dinner party that I stupidly invited the leader to… I didn't know."

Len swallowed hard. It was a lot to take in. Despite this, he didn't feel any differently about Hayate. "What… happened after that?"

"When I went back to their base of operations, their church… you could call it… I was pulled into the back room where they requested that I 'donate' my children to their cause after they were born." Hayate answered without hesitation. He glared a bit out the window at no one in particular, almost as though he was glaring at his reflection. "Can you believe it? They actually asked me to give up my flesh and blood… To lie to Karen and say that you both were still births… I was furious…"

Len felt oddly happy hearing Hayate had got mad at the request. He stood up and moved to the window as well. "What did you wind up telling them?"

Hayate went quiet for a few minutes which caused Len to look at him with a concerned look. Hayate turned to Len and dropped to his knees, pulling Len into a very strong hug. "I told them… that they would have to pull you and Rin from my dying flesh if they wanted you… and that I would protect you and your sister until my last breath…" He felt terrible. Even with that swear… he failed. He failed to protect Rin and Len. Those people got them regardless and no amount of atonement could fix it.

"I told Karen we had to move… after I said that to them. They knew where I lived and I knew they would try to get you and your sister after you were born. So… we moved. We moved as far away as possible. I never imagined they would follow us; or better yet, how they followed us." It was something that will now bother Hayate for a long time. "How did they know to walk across that road that day… or that we would even try to traverse it..."

It was Len's turn to remain quiet this time as he rested his chin on Hayate's head. It would seem that his father would now be filled with the same guilt that had been plaguing him for the last seven years. If only he had said no to going to see Luka… Hayate did make a point though. It was as if everything was planned out, but who would have told them? Luka was the only person to come to mind, but the very idea seemed unlikely. It wasn't even a guarantee that they were going to see her. It was just dumb luck on her part for being in the area. She always came to see he and Rin on their birthday.

Hayate closed his eyes and just remained there, hugging Len close to himself. It still felt like some sort of dream being able to see his son again after thinking him dead the last several years. "We searched for you two… We searched so many times…. We went back to the crash site several times a year in hopes that maybe… just one time… you two would be there. When the police finally convinced us that you two were gone... we tried to move on… but we couldn't let go… we'd still go back…"

Len's eyes dulled a bit and his expression went a bit emotionless. "Even when you were convinced… why?"

Hayate wasn't sure what to say to that. It would seem that way. "A part of us wanted it to be a lie… It just didn't seem right. They couldn't even produce a body or evidence that you two had perished... We couldn't let go because a part of us wanted to believe that by some chance you two survived… but like that… It's not right."

"…If you were more active in the cult with their 'rules'… would you have given us up?" Len continued his questioning, the tone of his voice was oddly cold though.

Hayate was quick to answer this without hesitation. "No." The tone of his voice was stern. "I would never give you up without a fight. You or Rin. Family first.. It will always be first… It wouldn't of been any different even if my ties to them were stronger…"

"Family… first…" Len repeated to himself, shaking his head a bit then. "I forgive you…"

Hayate pulled back from Len, pulling him down into a tighter hug before standing up, picking Len up with him. "I don't deserve it… This all could have been avoided…" He stated, moving to the bed and setting Len down. "Your fever is up again… You should try and get more sleep."

Len laughed and nodded. "Now I just got to figure out how to break the news to Rin." He said looking up at the ceiling. She doesn't even remember them. The only parts she knows about Karen and Hayate is whatever Len had managed to tell her. "I'm sure she'll be happy… but hesitant too. I won't tell her about you though… About your ties to the cult. I don't think she'd be as forgiving as me…" He mumbled the last part.

"Maybe someday we'll be able to live together again… as a family… You… Rin… your mother and I." Hayate said, his features softening as he watched Len crawl under the covers. "Probably not too soon yet… Once Rin comes to terms with everything…" He added.

Len let out a yawn as his eyes went back to Hayate after he had successfully got under the covers. "One day… For now… I'll stay where I am… Until this is all over… it might be for the best…" He said. Len could tell by Hayate's expression he wished it wouldn't be like that. "I don't want mom's opinion of you… to change…so please… stay out of it." He added, closing his eyes.

Hayate nodded, going to the couch and sitting down. "I guess it's for the best… All I can do now is stand back… I'll be sure to do what I can though… when it calls for it." He knew it would be impossible to stay out of it though. It's his fault Len and Rin were even in that situation. He got them back so he'd be damned if he lost them again. It was just a matter of figuring out how to help…

TBC


A/N: I am so very sorry for my delay in updates! I am having to re-read everything just to make sure I remember everything. I also have to go back and fix some contradictions that had happened that really badly need to be fixed (with the next update, I'll be sure to let everyone know the chapters that had been edited to have their contradictions fixed). Please be patient. This chapter MIGHT get revised later, but for now it's all I can give! I also apologize for any misspellings. My editor is currently away so I had to do it on my own. At least my English has improved!

Please R&R! Thank you very much!

~Haname Yukina